Shipping-tag



(ModeL) W. S. & J. A. UPSHUR 8; W. R. ROYSTER.

SHIPPING TAG.

Patented June 13,

UNITED STATES PATENT UEETQE.

WALTER S. UPSHUR, J OHN A. UPSHUB, AND WILLIAM R. ROYSTER, OF RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.

SHIPPING-TAG.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 259,343, dated June 13, 1882. 7

Application filed March 16, 1882.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WALTER S. UPSHUR, J OHN A. UPsHUR, and WM. R. Rorsrna, citi- Zens of the United States of America, residing at Richmond, in the county of Elenrico and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shipping-Tags; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Figure 1 represents in perspective a shipping-tag embodying our invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective of the barbed attaching device, and Fig. 3 a modified form of said device.

Like letters refer to like parts in all the figures.

A represents the face-plate of the tag, which is preferably made of sheet metal, but may, if desired, be of paper or other fabric or material. Each end of the plate A is bent around the end of a backing, B, and secured by a rivet, a which passes through the three plies of material at this part of the tag. The face A, backing B, and turned portion a of the face are perforated at U for the reception of the attaching-barb D. The face-plate is marked in stenciledletters-that is, is cutout in designs, which in this instance are letters, but which, if preferred, may be any fan cifnl design, brand, or trade-mark usually employed to distinguish merchandise, and these designs may indicate the shipper or the origin or quality of the merchandise. The backing B is of a contrasting color to that of the face, whereby the designs and characters cut out of the face are made more prominent or more readily seen. Different colors may be used on different portions of the backing-as, in this instance, the section beneath the left half, a, of the face is painted black; therighthalfia,isredw hereby the characters on each half are readily distinguishable from each other, and the color of each may indicate certain characteristics. For example, the letters G U may indicate that the package, bale, or bundle to which the tag (Model) is attached is one of a number of similarlymarked bales shipped in one lot, while the shippers name and the brand or quality of the package are indicated by the characters on the right half of the face; and, further, different brands or qualities may be indicated by different colors on this portion of the backing.

The attaching device consists of a nail, D, having barbs or tongues (1, adapted to be curved or bent to form barbs, as shown in dotted lines, Fig. 3.

The tag is designed for use on cottonbales, boxes, barrels, and all similar packages nsually employed in shipping merchandise, and it is secured or attached to such by driving the barbed nail through the perforation O and into the barrel or box or into the body of the cotton in the bail, or it may be (in case of lumber, 850.) into the article itself. It will readily be seen that the barbs on the nail or the tongues of the modified attaching device will serve to securely hold the tag in place after being driven into the bale, package, or article.

In practice shippers simply print with a stencil the shippingmarks upon the bale of cotton, and the frequent handling of the bale with the well-known cotton-hook soon tears out the mark or defaces the same, and the identity of the bale is lost, whereas by our invention the tag is inerasable and the colors of the backing are fully protected from abrasion by the facing.

I The particular form of the attaching device may be changed without departing from our invention, as its essential function is to retain the tag in position'when once driven. Hence on a common box ordinary nails will answer the desired purpose.

The rivets may be dispensed with, as when in position the attaching device holds the face and back in proper relative position, and the backing need not extend beyond the perforations 0 in the faceplate when the rivets are used.

Having described our invention and the manner of using the same, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Ashippin g-tag consisting of two plates, the rear plate of contrasting colors, the frontplatc provided with suitable stenciled cuts or figures 1 In testimony whereof we affix our signatures to to designate lot, brand, quality, or shipper, in presence of two witnesses.

and provided with suitable attaching devices, WALTER s UPSHUR substantially as shown and descrlbed. JNQ UPSHUR 2. The combination of a shippin -ta con- T sisting of a stenciled front plate 251d 3. rear WILLIAM R01 STER' plate of contrasting color with an attaching Witnesses: device, 1), having barbs (Z, substantially as I. LOVENsTEIN, shown and described. N. M. LEE. 

